Public opinion is clamouring for closer EU cooperation. The last thing we need is Ursula von der Leyen pandering to the far right
onald Trump’s “America First” policies are undermining decades of transatlantic cooperation just as Putin’s Russia destabilises Europe with direct military aggression. But these twin shocks have unintentionally accomplished something the EU institutions never could. They have made European integration feel not just important, but existential – a matter of democratic survival – for ordinary citizens.
From Helsinki to Lisbon, people are suddenly experiencing the same existential unease. Trade wars, defence threats and military aggression don’t respect borders. More and more Europeans now recognise that their small, individual nations cannot withstand simultaneous pressure from both Washington and Moscow. They find themselves caught between economic coercion and military intimidation.
Recent Eurobarometer data confirm the shift: 74% of Europeans now view EU membership as a positive thing – the highest level of support ever recorded.
This is a historic opportunity. And yet, EU and national leaders remain paralysed – unable, or unwilling, to convert this public support and shared urgency into political momentum for reducing Europe’s dependence on US military guarantees and economic shelter.
